Lions end 19-game losing streak

DETROIT — The Detroit Lions ended their 19-game losing streak by holding off the Redskins, 19-14.

By Associated Press

DETROIT — The Detroit Lions ended their 19-game losing streak by holding off the Redskins, 19-14.

Matthew Stafford threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Bryant Johnson in the first quarter and the two connected to draw a key penalty to set up a TD in the fourth quarter.

The Lions (1-2) had not won since Dec. 23, 2007 and their skid matched the second longest in NFL history.

Washington (1-2) pulled within five points on Jason Campbell's second touchdown pass with 2:36 left in the game, but couldn't prevent the Lions from picking up a first down that ran time off the clock and cost it three timeouts.

The Redskins had their last of many chances to win from their 22 with 1:05 left and couldn't get inside the 20 before time expired.

Vikings 2749ers 24

MINNEAPOLIS — Brett Favre threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to Greg Lewis in the back of the end zone with 2 seconds left to lift Minnesota to a 27-24 victory over the stunned San Francisco 49ers, keeping the Vikings unbeaten.

An official review upheld Lewis's unbelievable catch, sending the sellout crowd into a frenzy. Some of the fans had already left after two unsuccessful possessions against a stingy 49ers defense. More of them booed during the second half as the offense struggled to move the ball and Favre's passes were off target.

But they were sure on at the end, during an 80-yard drive that took 87 of the 89 seconds that remained when the Vikings (3-0) got the ball back. Favre completed six passes during the drive and finished 24-for-46 for 301 yards, two scores and his first interception.

Eagles 34Chiefs 14

PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles didn't need much from Michael Vick to beat the Kansas City Chiefs. They didn't need anything from Donovan McNabb or Brian Westbrook.

Getting significant contributions from their youngsters and backups, the Eagles routed the Chiefs in Vick's return to the NFL.

Kevin Kolb threw for 327 yards and two touchdowns, LeSean McCoy had 84 yards rushing and one TD, and DeSean Jackson and Brent Celek each had 100-plus yards receiving and one score for Philadelphia (2-1).

Jets 24Titans 17

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — David Harris had an interception and a big sack on consecutive drives, and Mark Sanchez threw two touchdown passes and ran for another as the Jets stayed undefeated by holding on for a victory over the Titans.

Sanchez became the first rookie quarterback to start a season with wins in his first three games, and helped the Jets to their fourth 3-0 start in franchise history.

Packers 36Rams 17

ST. LOUIS — Aaron Rodgers threw two touchdown passes and ran for another, and the Packers sent the Rams to their 13th straight loss.

Rodgers was 13 for 23 for 269 yards. The Rams (0-3) have lost 30 of 35 since the start of the 2007 season.

Rodgers and Greg Jennings hooked up on passes of 50 and 53 yards that set up touchdowns for Green Bay (2-1). Rodgers had a 46-yard pass to Donald Driver that set up another score, and he scored on a 4-yard run.

Ravens 34Browns 3

BALTIMORE — Joe Flacco threw for a career-high 342 yards, Willis McGahee scored two more touchdowns, and the Ravens cruised to a victory over the Browns.

After Baltimore (3-0) held the Browns to 78 yards while building a 20-0 halftime lead, Cleveland coach Eric Mangini pulled quarterback Brady Quinn in favor of Derek Anderson. The switch did nothing to turn around the fortune of a team that has been outscored 95-29 this season.

Jaguars 31Texans 24

HOUSTON — Maurice Jones-Drew had his first 100-yard game of the season and scored three touchdowns to lead the Jaguars to a victory over the mistake-prone Houston Texans on Sunday.

Jones-Drew scored the go-ahead touchdown on an 8-yard run early in the fourth quarter and finished with 119 yards rushing.

Giants 24Buccaneers 0

TAMPA, Fla. — Eli Manning threw for two touchdowns and Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw led a resurgence of a strong ground attack that was absent the previous two weeks, helping the Giants (3-0) remain unbeaten with a rout of the winless Bucs (0-3).

Tampa Bay, which has lost seven straight dating to an 0-4 December that cost it a playoff berth last season, was outgained 397 yards to 86 and did not have a first down until late in the third quarter.

Broncos 23Raiders 3

OAKLAND, Calif. — All that offseason disfunction in Denver is a thing of the past. Josh McDaniels and Kyle Orton have the Broncos off to a 3-0 start.

Orton threw a touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall, and rookie Knowshon Moreno ran for 90 yards and a score to lead the Broncos to a victory over the Raiders on Sunday.

McDaniels caused an immediate stir when he was hired to replace the fired Mike Shanahan as coach in Denver last offseason. He alienated Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler before trading him to Chicago for Orton, then suspended Marshall in the preseason.

Chargers 23Dolphins 13

SAN DIEGO — Philip Rivers had his usual big plays and a nifty little one that helped the San Diego Chargers end a seven-game losing streak against Miami.

Rivers scored on a 5-yard scramble late in the third quarter to highlight a victory over the winless Dolphins, who lost quarterback Chad Pennington to a shoulder injury early in the second half.

Saints 27Bills 7

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Will Smith had an interception and a sack to help New Orleans shut down Buffalo.

The Saints prevented the Bills from mustering any type of a threat through three quarters.

That's when Pierre Thomas took over, sealing the win with two touchdown runs in the final 10 minutes. Thomas finished with 126 yards rushing, while scoring on 34- and 19-yard runs for a Saints offense had scored 45 points in each of its first two games.

The Bills offense sputtered, and Terrell Owens was held without a catch, to end a 185-game streak that had been second longest among active players.

Bengals 23Steelers 20

CINCINNATI — Carson Palmer threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Andre Caldwell with 14 seconds left, completing a nearly perfect drive that gave the Bengals a victory and ended the Steelers' nearly decade-long domination in Cincinnati.

Pittsburgh (1-2) had won its last eight games on Cincinnati's home field. The last time the Bengals beat them at Paul Brown Stadium was 2001, when Chad Ochocinco was a rookie who rarely started and still went by the name of Johnson.

Bears 25Seahawks 19

SEATTLE — Jay Cutler pumped his fists. He hugged his linemen. And he raised both arms triumphantly — all inside the final 2 minutes.

Exactly the scenes the Bears envisioned when they traded a king's ransom to Denver to get him.

Cutler's miserable Chicago debut two weeks ago became forgotten when he completed all three of his passes on Sunday's decisive drive. The third was for 36 yards to Devin Hester with 1:52 remaining, rallying the Bears to a victory over the Seahawks.

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